Grandpa's Alter Bar!!

I am sorry if this is not a completed project but it was so cool I had to share it.

I inherited this bar after my Grandmother died about 5 years ago. Since then we moved and I had no place for it in the new house, so it sat in my garage/woodshop taking up space. The bar had a nice top on it and the base was wrapped in awesome 70’s style paneling. I wished I had gotten a before I started picture to show what it looked like, but I took a photo of the paneling. So in order to get some more room in my garage the bar had to go. After asking if anyone wanted it, I started riping it apart to re-perpose the top.

I had always heard stories that my Grandpa had built the bar out of an alter that he got at a church auction. It was always kind of one of those funny stories. But I just thought he used the top. To my surprise when my son and I started to take it apart we started to find some really nice oak on the sides under the paneling. And then I pulled the front off and this is what I found!!

The front panels all came off seperately, one has a pretty big crack in it, but I can fix that. I am thinking I might refinish them and hang them in the house somewhere. I bet they were hand carved a long time ago!! Almost scared to even try and refinish them. The have some really cool handwriting on the back that I will definately leave there. Have to do some research before I start that project, but I will post it as soon as it is done. The rest is going into boxes that I am going to make with my new handy dandy incra jig that I got used for $150 bucks (tool gloat)!!!

I am so glad I was able to save this piece of art. I feel all Indiana Jones now!!